600w vs. 1000w hps

[mrcokeandcrown]

I ran 600w's up until I spent a TON of MONEY on new
Plasma lights, which I found out were cheap knock
Offs an I began haven issues with the lights stayin on or
stayin Lit. Sent them back an now start over with hps AGAIN.

I'm thinking about going back to the same hydrofarm hoods,
600w with switchable phantom ballast just wondering if it's
Worth the switch to 1000w's instead.


Edit: sorry didn't enphifsize a TON OF MONEY, ENOUGH.

 

[neophyte101]

600 is more effective but 1000 makes great plants too. depends on your preference and space.... there are 1000 watt ballasts than you can dim to 600... best of both worlds?

 

[st0wandgrow]

600 is more effective but 1000 makes great plants too. depends on your preference and space.... there are 1000 watt ballasts than you can dim to 600... best of both worlds?

Just curious .... how do you conclude that "600 is more effective"?

 

[st0wandgrow]

I ran 600w's up until I spent a TON of MONEY on new
Plasma lights, which I found out were cheap knock
Offs an I began haven issues with the lights stayin on or
stayin Lit. Sent them back an now start over with hps AGAIN.

I'm thinking about going back to the same hydrofarm hoods,
600w with switchable phantom ballast just wondering if it's
Worth the switch to 1000w's instead.


Edit: sorry didn't enphifsize a TON OF MONEY, ENOUGH.

It depends on your circumstances. Is the extra money for a 1000 watt setup a consideration? Will a 1000 watt hps kick out too much heat in your flowering area? Would the extra electrical pull be an issue for you?

There are many things to consider, but if all else is equal I would always opt for more wattage/lumens.

 

[SirKushaLot]

I did a side by side with 3 plants under each light. I pulled more from the 1000w side but it wasn't by much. I'm running all 600s now. 2 x 600s pull more than 1 x 1000w

 

[st0wandgrow]

I did a side by side with 3 plants under each light. I pulled more from the 1000w side but it wasn't by much. I'm running all 600s now. 2 x 600s pull more than 1 x 1000w

That would make sense that 2 600's would pull more than one 1000. There are more lumens, and better light dispersion because you have two separate lights. The down side is you have a lot more money invested in two ballasts, two bulbs, two hoods, etc .... and you are drawing quite a bit more electricity with your two 600 setups as well. One 1000 watt is more efficient (more bang for the buck) than 2 600 watt setups. Especially if you incorporate a light rail/light mover.

 

[specialk2]

a lot of things to take into consideration here...

- Depending on what ballast/ballasts you are using... Digitals will reduce your draw on electricity. Same goes for using 240 or 120 power.
- It's more than just your lumens... the light spectrum and area you will be able to cover with an additional hood.
- You should be able to run 1000 and 600's in the same hood, regardless.
- I am not a fan of a light rail mover, I understand them, I just figure why use up that space when you can install another hood??

Personally, we have seen more "bang for our buck" with 600's over 1000's.

 

[stumpjumper]

You'd appreciate a 600 over 1000 in the summer especially unless you like to spend the extra on cooling..

600w bulbs are more efficient than 1000w especially when you start using more than 1.... There are charts out there, do a search.

 

[gladstoned]

That would make sense that 2 600's would pull more than one 1000. There are more lumens, and better light dispersion because you have two separate lights. The down side is you have a lot more money invested in two ballasts, two bulbs, two hoods, etc .... and you are drawing quite a bit more electricity with your two 600 setups as well. One 1000 watt is more efficient (more bang for the buck) than 2 600 watt setups. Especially if you incorporate a light rail/light mover.

Dual 600w Lumatek to run to 600w hoods. I have one for my Grozilla and I boxed it up about an hour ago to ship back and have replaced. Only one side works.
Anyway I am not sure yet if this is a good recommendation for a dual ballast or not. Having one ballast instead of two in pretty convenient. (When they both work).

 

[mrcokeandcrown]

Sweet I'm stayin with 600's , just wondering what people had to
Say

 

[cephalopod]

I just took 2-1000w dimmable off a light mover and put both over a 4x4 table. 600 is suppose to be more efficient, because it narrowly puts out more lumens per watt than a 1000w and can be placed closer. Costs $50.40 to run a 600w and $84.00 to run a 1000w for 12hrs a day @10¢ a KwH. I'll be running 2000w during the middle of flower, starting from a thousand watts working up to 2000 and back down to 500 the last 2 weeks. It's going to cost about 30 more dollars over a 70 day period. Sorry about your luck with the plasma, I thought they'd be the future but too pricey for me right now.

 

[st0wandgrow]

Dual 600w Lumatek to run to 600w hoods. I have one for my Grozilla and I boxed it up about an hour ago to ship back and have replaced. Only one side works.
Anyway I am not sure yet if this is a good recommendation for a dual ballast or not. Having one ballast instead of two in pretty convenient. (When they both work).

I've never used a dual ballast. My question would be this: Does the dual 600 watt ballast actually draw 1200 watts of electricity, and if not, what is the benefit other than light dispersion? This might be a dumb question ....

 

[gladstoned]

I've never used a dual ballast. My question would be this: Does the dual 600 watt ballast actually draw 1200 watts of electricity, and if not, what is the benefit other than light dispersion? This might be a dumb question ....

I believe running 2 - 600s it would draw 1200. I have a grozilla that holds two lights, so I bought the dual 600 so I didn't need two ballasts for one fixture. I have a 600W hortilux Super HPS and a 400W hortilux MH Blue for a dual spectrum to fuck around with. Pretty Expensive light and I doubt if I will do that again. lol.

 

[gladstoned]

Oh, my point. lol. the dual 600 is dimmable so you can run 400's too. Maybe even 250's, Im not sure and like I said I boxed it and wrapped it this morning to get fixed or swapped or something.
One brief thought I originally had was using (3)dual 600's to power (6) 600w hoods and put those on a flip box so three ballasts would work (12) hoods over a 24hr period, then just have a spare ballast on the shelf for when there is a problem with one. But I don't subscribe fully to the 600w idea and I need to have some 1000 Watters!! lol

 

[st0wandgrow]

Shit, dual ballasts didn't even exist when I purchased most of my gear. Sounds pretty cool, though!

 

[gladstoned]

Shit, dual ballasts didn't even exist when I purchased most of my gear. Sounds pretty cool, though!

...or sounds good on paper. I was told best scenario I would be without ballast about 10-12 days. I bought it off ebay for $300. They run about $400 usually. And before the hydroshop owners say, that's what you get mother fucker. I live in the UP. There are two places within a two hours drive of my place. Neither one of them ever have enough stock, one cause they sell so much and they cuz they don't I guess. lol. And they would have to take it and do the same fucking thing I am. Anyway, for one reason or the other they are not very popular.

 

[Gastanker]

HPS is more efficient lumen/w at 600w but it really comes down to grow style and personal preference. My preference is towards 600s.

 

[Buddy Ganga]

We've been trying a cycle that starts them off under 600's in the first 2 to 4 weeks and then up to the 1000's to finish.
But I can tell you right now, we have harvested more weight per plant under 600's then from under a 1000's in the same conditions.

Fact is, a plant can only absorb so much before the light becomes wasted or damaging.

 

[bob harris]

We've been trying a cycle that starts them off under 600's in the first 2 to 4 weeks and then up to the 1000's to finish.
But I can tell you right now, we have harvested more weight per plant under 600's then from under a 1000's in the same conditions.

Fact is, a plant can only absorb so much before the light becomes wasted or damaging.

50 watts per sq ft is about right. Maybe 75 watts per sq ft if you're growing a sativa..but after that you're getting diminished returns.

I run 2 600's over a 4 x6 flowering area. I chose 2 600's rather than one 1000 single because I get more "angles" of light with the 2 600's.

If you are limited to one light..the 1000 is defiantly more light than one 600, but remember, the higher you hang it to increase footprint and reduce heat, the weaker the actual light becomes.

 

[Buddy Ganga]

We run two 4x8 flower tents with one of each, and another 4x4 with a single 600.
At times we run a 5x5 with a 1000 watt raptor hood. We shut it down the other night after the bulb blew up and shattered the glass.

Check this out, the hood has a 5 year warranty and the store I bought it from of course does not have any lenses in stock.
So they told me to bring back my hood and they will just exchange it for a new one.. No shit..
They have a 1 year "replacement" on all of their bulbs and will exchange, not repair any faulty ballasts you buy from them.
They not only price match but they will give you a 15% discount if you show them your card too..